A chance conversation with soldiers on exercise led to Private Alex Blantz joining the Army and to eventually train on the same exercise in his home town in Queensland.
Private Blantz was a volunteer at the Rainbow Beach Surf Life Saving Club, where he saw soldiers from 10th Force Support Battalion conducting advanced watercraft training on Exercise Surfing Penguin.
A few years later, Private Blantz is now in the Army as a marine specialist, training with the same unit.
"I saw the Army training on the beach and talked to them about their job," Private Blantz said.
"I knew nothing about watercrafts or that Army operated in the water at all.
"As I talked more with the soldiers I thought, 'that's a cool job'.
"I joined the following year, picked my preference to be a 'boaty' (in the Royal Australian Corps of Transport) - now I'm in the same unit that was here at the beach."
Exercise Surfing Penguin exposes marine specialists to rough surf conditions with the lighter, amphibious, resupply, cargo, 5-tonne (LARC-V) vehicle and F470 Zodiacs to prepare them to respond to high-risk weather events in support of domestic and international operations.
"Now I'm qualified to operate the Zodiacs and because of my experience as a surf life saver, one of my responsibilities on exercise is to rescue and recover from the water," Private Blantz said.
"I've been on a few deployments now like Operation Resolute and disaster relief; I'm keen to keep learning more and travel with the unit.
"For me, as long as it's fun and I can keep qualifying in new equipment, I'll stay."
